Our Featured Bride

Stephanie and her new husband, Phil, had a beautiful wedding in St. Louis…AND came across someone with their pet piglet in the park (squee!). Which resulted in pretty much the cutest picture ever:
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With a gorgeous southern June wedding planned (complete with lush flowers grown and arranged by a good family friend) and a life married to her sweetie to look forward to, Kathryn wasn’t going to let the wrong wedding dress get her down.

We could tell the rest of Kathryn’s dress tale, but her mom, Mary, shared it with such tenderness for her daughter that it simultaneously made us all want to call home and proud Kathryn chose a Lea-Ann Belter Bridal gown!

“Our daughter Kathryn had a lovely wedding in Charlottesville, VA this past June and was so pleased with her Mathia dress that she purchased at Jingles in Richmond. She had bought another dress from a different store in September 2010 but no matter how many times the seamstress worked on the fitting, the bodice just never fit correctly. She could have ‘made do’ with that dress but we wanted her to feel confident and to feel good about her dress on her wedding day so we decided to try again.

“Kathryn is in law school in California so our shopping time together is extremely limited. When Kathryn first tried on the Mathia at the end of March, she was so happy with the feel of the silk and the lightness of the dress itself. It looked beautiful on her and when we found out it could actually be made and delivered well before her wedding date, we were ecstatic! We liked that it was made in Canada instead of having to be shipped to us from far overseas. We were also glad that the dress could be made more to Kathryn’s measurements instead of just a stock size which was a relief after the fitting difficulties of the previous dress. It helped too that Jingles was willing to work with us on a quick turn-around on alterations since Kathryn couldn’t be in VA again until the week of the wedding. “

Kathryn’s wedding was so beautiful – we loved the pink bridesmaid dresses, the flowers created (and grown!) by a family friend, and, of course, the bride in her Mathia – we wanted to know all the details. Luckily for us, Kathryn kindly told us how she and Adair met, about the search for her new gown, the thunderstorm on her wedding day, and where she got those great bridesmaid dresses:

“My husband and I met and fell in love in Charlottesville, Virginia, and we are both University of Virginia alumni, so when we started planning our wedding, we knew right away that we wanted it in Charlottesville. It was a challenge to plan a wedding for 250 from California, where we now live, but my mother and her friends were amazing, driving up regularly from Lynchburg, my hometown, to visit venues and meet with vendors. We knew we wanted an elegant, traditional Southern wedding, but most importantly, we wanted everyone to dance the night away and have fun!

“After a bit of a dress catastrophe, I ended up looking for a new dress just a few months before the wedding. Jingles in Richmond is fantastic. They worked with our tight timeline, and they showed me a Lea Ann Belter dress–the Mathia–that I fell in love with. It was light (perfect for a 100-degree Virginia June day), beautiful, and fun. We couldn’t believe it could be made in time for the wedding–without even a rush fee! The Lea-Ann Belter customer service people I spoke with were fabulous; they talked me through color choices, sent me swatches, and assured me that everything would work out perfectly. Not only that, but the dress needed very few alternations because it was made to my measurements. ”

“My bridesmaids wore LulaKate dresses with a similar sweetheart neckline, and my junior bridesmaid, Aley, and flower girls, Brantley and Sydney, also wore LulaKate. We were lucky to have a close family friend who is a florist and grows her own flowers. Kaye Moomaw of Irvington Spring Farm was able to grow and save plenty of beautiful white and pink peonies for us (because of the Virginia heat, these spring flowers–my favorites–are usually gone by June!). Emily Garbee of Bodyworks in Lynchburg did our hair and makeup, and Sarah Cramer of Cramer Photo took our pictures. Sarah went to UVa with me, and I have always loved her work, so it was such a treat to have her photograph our wedding.”

“We got a little bit nervous when a big thunderstorm hit as soon as we arrived at the church, but the sun was out in full force for the wedding. We were married in Christ Episcopal Church, the oldest church in Charlottesville, which we both attended when we lived there, and which was particularly meaningful to me. The reception was at Glenmore Country Club, and Beth Hyder, the coordinator there, did an amazing job making sure everything was just right.”

“Adair and I loved every second of our wedding–we felt incredibly loved and cared for by all our friends and family members, and it was every bit as full of fun and dancing as we had hoped. The Mathia was the perfect dress to dance in, and I had such a joyful day in it. Thank you for making it work on such a short timeline and for all your help!”